The invention relates to a sanitary installation element which can be inserted into the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting and which has an adjustment device for varying the clear throughflow cross section of the installation element and/or the volume flow, which adjustment device can be actuated by means of at least one operating element which is arranged, such that it can be actuated, on the inflow side of the installation element and/or on the outflow side of said installation element, wherein the adjustment device has a regulating element and, interacting therewith, an adjustment element, the relative position of which can be varied by means of the at least one operating element in order to vary the throughflow cross section or the throughflow rate.
Various sanitary installation elements are already known which can be mounted on the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting in order to regulate or form the water jet emerging therefrom. Various jet regulators have already been created, the intention of which is to form the water jet emerging from the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting into a homogeneous, non-sputtering and if appropriate also sparkling, soft overall jet.
An installation element of the type mentioned in the introduction which can be mounted on the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting is already known from FR 2 907 874 A, which installation element provides the user with a selection of different throughflow cross sections. For this purpose, the already known installation element has an adjustment device which can be actuated by means of a sleeve-shaped operating element which forms the outlet-side face edge of the installation element. The operating element which is guided so as to be displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the installation element is drive-connected to a cylindrical adjustment element, which is rotatably mounted in the installation element transversely with respect to the longitudinal axis thereof, in such a way that an axial exertion of pressure on the operating element can be converted into a rotational movement of the adjustment element. In the adjustment element there are a plurality of throughflow ducts available for selection, which throughflow ducts interact with the adjoining wall regions, which serve as a regulating element, of the installation element in such a way that a throughflow duct of larger throughflow cross section or a throughflow duct of relatively small throughflow cross section can be selected, or the throughflow through the installation element can be completely blocked.
Also already known, from DE 10 2006 057 795 B, is a sanitary installation element which can likewise be inserted into the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting and is designed as a jet regulator. The already known jet regulator which serves as an installation element is intended to form the water emerging from the outlet fitting into a homogeneous and non-sputtering water jet. The already known installation element has a central cleaning duct, the duct inlet of which is provided on the base of a concave upstream screen which is provided upstream at the inflow side and which tapers in the throughflow direction. In the region of the duct opening there is provided an adjustment device which is formed as a shut-off valve, the valve body of which can be moved from an open position into a closed position counter to a restoring force either under the pressure of the inflowing water or else manually by means of an operating element connected to the valve body. Since, after every withdrawal of water, the shut-off valve re-opens the duct opening leading to the cleaning duct, it is possible, during a subsequent withdrawal of water, for the dirt particles which are entrained in the water and which have been retained on the screen surface of the upstream screen to firstly be flushed away through the cleaning duct before the shut-off valve closes again during the withdrawal of water. Every opening and closing movement of the shut-off valve simultaneously entails an increase or decrease in size, and thus a variation, of the throughflow cross section of the installation element.
Since different sanitary water system specifications exist in different countries, a corresponding multiplicity of jet regulators is required in order to allow for the country-specific specifications. The multiplicity of jet regulators requires a not inconsiderable outlay in terms of production and stockkeeping. Since the outlet fittings sold by different manufacturers exhibit different and sometimes also high hydraulic resistances, different throughflow rate regulators are required in order to regulate the maximum water quantity emerging per unit time, as a result of which the outlay in terms of production and stockkeeping is additionally increased.